#whose favorite food was sand

[grimm-the-tiger]

I’ve never met a queer person (me included) who doesn’t play DnD like an absolute fucking maniac. I was in a party with two bards, both of whom were queer. One of them tried to seduce a house, the other succeeded in seducing a barmaid working for a secret rebellion against a tyrannical queen (who the other bard also tried to seduce). I jumped screaming out a window in my first DnD session ever. In my last campaign, one of my party mates was playing gender-flipped Sun Wukong. There are only two straight people I’ve met who were able to match the energy of our queer shenanigans; one of them is best friends with the aforementioned barmaid-seducing bard, and the other I’m still half-convinced is an elusive Homophobic Homosexual™ because his dynamic with the team ranger was...not what I’d call platonic. 

[yuurei20]

Strange question but!! Yk how the villains are treated as heroes? How on earth did the heroes stories work if they, uh, yk, dont have the villains? Like i briefly remember TWST!Jafar hijacking Aladdin’s plan to fake being a prince, so theres not rlly any more “aladdin” story, but im curious how other stories went if u know! Are the OG heroes still treated as heroes, etc etc, that fun stuff

Hello hello! Thank you so much for this question!!

The different interpretations of history that seem exist in Twst are fascinating, and one of my favorite things is the part in Book 6 where Lilia seems to insinuate that the Disney stories that we know might not actually be what really happened, because history is written by the victors:

These "classic" stories--were they, too, twisted to suit an agenda? Is the truth closer to what is taught as history in Twst, or is it somewhere in the middle? It is so interesting to think about!

For the most part it seems that the heroes from the stories we know are not turned into villains in Twst, and the deeds that are attributed to them were actually done by multiple characters from different folklore:

For example, Harveston has stories about miners and customs based on "a young lady who made a wish at a well," a "traveler" who cleaned a stranger's home and then a tale about "some princess who wished to fall in love right away," as if the young lady, princess and traveler are three separate people.

While basing their traditions on the miners, the lady and traveler, they also deify the Fairest Queen, as if they are all independent individuals with no overlap.

One of the more interesting parts of the Fairest Queen's history, in particular, is that there is actually a "dastardly villain" in Harveston folklore that stalks a woman who is then saved by forest creatures.

The huntsman is--just like the queen--not a villain in the Twst universe. Who was who, and what really happened? 👀

For the Scalding Sands, it seems that the unnamed princess and the sultan from local stories are just as revered as the Sorcerer of the Sands himself, with the sultan known to be the person who named the Sorcerer as his vizier and retaining their connection from the story we know.

Much like in Harveston, the history of the Scalding Sands seems to attribute what we believe to be the history of just one character to multiple individuals: Kalim talks about the Sorcerer saving his country from a street rat, who was a swindler/charlatan/usurper who tried to trick the sultan and princess, in a rare case of a "hero" being vilified.

But they also have folklore about "a poor but kind-hearted young man" who shared his food with children, and whose marriage to the beautiful princess they celebrate every year with a festival.

Whereas the Disney movies make the charlatan and the kind man into one person, in Twst's history it seems they were two different people.

Diasomnia is very big on the Thorn Fairy, and they also talk about the human king who feared her, the princess whose birthday she was not invited to (Silver: "Was their king raised in a barn?") and the three presents that the princess received.

Lilia talks about a trio of fairies that were not able to break the Thorn Fairy's curses and also put an entire kingdom to sleep, while Silver comments on how Lilia is consciously, intentionally emulating the three fairies from that tale with his cooking.

Silver and Malleus discuss "some faeries" raising a child for 16 years without magic, but they do not seem to know why they did so, and it is unclear if they believe that those faeries and the three faeries that put the kingdom to sleep are the same or different people.

Heartslabyul seems to separate Alice into two different characters as well, referring to a 1-km-tall giant that the Queen of Hearts tried in court and a child that got lost in the castle as if they were two people.

The only reference we get of the "heroes" of the Lion King tale are Jack referring to the King of Beast's "rascal of a nephew" and Leona mentioning that he deposed his brother "to build a better, wiser kingdom."

While the characters seem similar to the stories we know it's possible that the timelines are slightly different, with the rebirth of the pridelands being attributed to the King of Beasts himself rather than his nephew.

The history of the Sea Witch in Twst might be the most fascinating: the characters reference the Sea Witch taking someone's voice for a contract and making a shapeshifting potion to facilitate love between a mermaid and a human, but also turning herself into a human and being proposed to by a prince the next day, with no acknowledgement that the human from the first tale and the prince from the second might have been the same person.

They also talk about the eels flipping over a boat and a mermaid princess who had trouble walking on land, but there is no mention of the princess being in the boat in the eel story.

Octavinelle even acknowledges that the Sea Witch once made herself huge and sunk a ship with a whirlpool and "some even labeled her a monster," saying that she was later lauded as a compassionate figure after turning over a new leaf. (While the less-than-pleasant deeds done by the Sorcerer, the Fairest Queen and the King of Beasts in the stories that we know are never mentioned.)

Silver's tale from Halloween seems to be an exception to this rule. Everything done by the "hero" in the tale we know is still attributed to the hero in the story that Silver knows, and the enemy army is still the enemy army.

To the initial question: it seems that the heroes from the histories that we know are still being regarded as heroes in Twst (though they tend to get separated into multiple people), while the characters that we know as villains are also highly regarded. This sometimes includes their pasts (in the case of the Sea Witch and the Queen of Hearts), being separated from their pasts (in the case of the Hunter) or with no mention of their pasts (the King of Beasts, the Sorcerer of the Sands, the Fairest Queen, the Thorn Fairy).

(Not a lot of information about the King of the Underworld when compared to the others! Idia mostly just talks about how charismatic he was. Ortho suggests something about "the truth" about him being closer to Idia's own situation than they have been taught, but Idia is not convinced.)

Also: there is a reference to a hero rescuing his ladylove from the Underworld in Book 6, so it seems the hero in that tale remains a hero in Twst as well!

[medusapelagia]

Christmas 1985

Celebrating another birthday with another little fic! This one is for @lemonhitsu's birthday, inspired by his incredible art! You can find the image HERE!

Rating: Teen and Up Relationship: Steve /Billy TW: no one Words: 2273

"I fucking hate Christmas!" Billy sighs, trying to find a free spot in the parking lot. 

Everyone in Hawkins is at the mall, looking for Christmas presents, and now he's there as well. And guess whose fault it is?

Maxine, obviously.

Because she decided that she needed a special present for her stupid boyfriend. Boyfriend. As if a relationship between two fourteen-year-olds meant anything at all. Max will definitely dump him in a few weeks, she's too cool for that little nerd.

But Susan asked Billy to drive her. She even promised to make him his favorite plate for dinner, and Billy, begrudgingly, agreed. That’s why he’s driving around the parking lot looking for a parking place.

"Stop the car! Stop the car!" Max yells, pointing at a car in front of them that just turned the lights on, "They're leaving!" she announces happily and Billy groans, both annoyed at the idea that he'll have to get inside the mall and relieved that he won't have to drive around the stupid parking lot once more.

As the car starts to move, Billy sees another vehicle moving in the direction of his spot, so he quickly speeds up and parks his Camaro in a swift maneuver.

"Fuck! I told you that asshole was going to steal our place!" a kid's voice says, and when Billy Leaves the car, ready to fight, he recognizes a familiar Beemer.

"Harrington?"

"Hey, Billy! I'm surprised to see you at the mall. I thought you hated this place."

"I do, but Max wants to buy a present for…"

"For mom!" she interrupts him, "A present for mom. And Billy was so kind as to offer to come with me."

Steve lifts an eyebrow, unconvinced, but nods.

"Ok, you know what? Why don't you go to the mall with Billy and Max, Dustin? I still have to find a parking space."

"Steve! You promised! You promised to help me find the right present for Suzy!"

"I know, I know. And I will. I swear! But maybe Billy and Max can help you and then I'll give you my opinion?" Dustin crosses his arms in front of his chest, annoyed, "Listen, Dustin, you can stay in the car with me but I don't know how long it will take to find a parking space. The time that you could spend inside the mall actively looking for a present. So. What do you say?"

Dustin muffles something about how unfair the situation is and that the parking space was theirs, but in the end, he leaves the car, slamming the door to piss Steve off.

"Kids." Steve sighs, then he waves at the guys and starts to drive, still looking for a place to park his car.

"Suzy, huh? How come she hasn't dumped you yet?" Billy asks while they get inside the mall.

"She didn't and she won't. Our love is too special!" Dustin replies, glaring offended at Billy.

"Good for you. Ok, Steve isn't here, so go where the hell you want and I'll see you both here at the food area in an hour."

"An hour? But it's not enough!" Max protests, "You promised me..."

"I promised to drive you to the mall and to drive you back. No one said anything about time. Now scram. This place is packed." Billy replies, Walking toward the movie theater.

When he was a kid they had a tradition, after the Christmas lunch, his mom used to drive him to the movie theater to see a Christmas comedy.

Billy’s family traditions weren’t really common, but he loved them nevertheless.

In the last couple of weeks of November, his mom and he used to go to the beach and look for little sticks carried by the waves and some seashells to make their little Christmas tree. It was nothing fancy, just a series of small branches kept together by rope and glue gun and a few seashells, but Billy was always eager to go to the beach with his mom. He couldn't wait to take off his shoes and run on the damp sand, looking for the best seashells for their three.

But after she left there were no more trees in Billy’s house. Neither real nor made of sticks. And no more movies either. Just a boring day with his father and some overcooked, if not burnt, premade food.

Even now, that Neil was finally in prison for domestic violence, there wasn’t a tree in Billy’s house. Susan tried to ask him if he wanted to choose one at the local tree farm with Max, but both of them had expressed their disgust at the idea, so no Christmas Tree for the Harringrove-Mayfield family.

The mall was full of red and green decorations, families, and Children. And reindeers. So many fucking reindeer.

The shop assistants were wearing reindeer antlers headbands, the shops are full of sweaters with reindeer, pillows decorated with reindeer, and even little reindeer earrings.

Billy looks at the earrings, thinking that they are something Susan might like. She was so sad when Max and Billy refused to buy a Christmas Tree and she was so nice to him since Neil finally left the house. She even helped him get the job at the garage, so he grunts and asks one of the shop assistants to make a little package for him. He buries the little box in his back pocket and leaves the shop, finding Max eating an ice cream and waiting for him.

"Did you buy a present for Steve?"

If there's another person who despises Christmas as much as Billy does it's Steve.

"No. He hates Christmas. Why do you ask?"

"I saw you buying some kind of jewel and asking for a package."

"They are earrings. For Susan."

Max stares at him in confusion, "For Mom?"

"Yeah. The woman who cooks for us every day? And that kept me in her house? You know that woman?"

Max nods, licking her ice cream.

"Isn't it too cold for ice cream?"

"It's never too cold for ice cream!" she proudly declares.

"You done?" Billy asks, looking at the bag at her feet.

"I'm done. Now I can help you."

"Help me with what?"

"Searching a present for Steve, shithead!"

"I already told you! He hates…"

"He's going to invite you for Christmas. I know it, the boys know it, Mom knows it. And you can't get there without a present."

"He's… what?"

"Come on!" Max says, grabbing Billy's hand and dragging him toward every single shop in the mall with no success. Steve is so rich that whatever he might need he already has it, apart from…

"I'm not going to buy a fucking reindeer sweater." Billy declares, crossing his arms.

"Come on! It will be fun! I'm sure he doesn't have one and I'm sure Steve will love it! He's such a dork!"

"He's not a dork, he's a jock, and jocks don't wear reindeer sweaters."

"Not even this one?" Max asks with a grin, grabbing a red sweater in the back of the shop.

It takes a moment for Billy to understand what he's looking at, but when he does he bursts out in a loud laugh.

"You could buy matching ones!" Max excitedly declares.

Billy grabs the sweater from her hands, "You're too young for this, shit bird. But it's fun. I'll give you that. But I don't know if I feel comfortable buying a sweater with two reindeer having sex as a present for someone."

"So boooring! Well, you could buy him the green one." she insists, "Red and green are Christmas colors, and red is your color. It makes your eyes pop."

Billy looks at his clock: if really Harrington is going to invite him for Christmas dinner, and if Max says so he has no reason to doubt it, he needs a present, and maybe that sweater isn't that bad.

"Fucking reindeer." Billy snarls, going to pay for the sweater. 

The checkout boy snorts when he sees the red sweater, so Billy pays as fast as he can and gets back to the car, catching a glimpse of Harrington and Dustin in front of a flower shop.

If the boy thinks they can send some plants to Utah, he's not the Genius Billy thought he was.

*** 

The days before Christmas pass in a blur. Everyone in town needs their car checked, so before Billy knows it, it's Christmas Day.

Max is old enough that she doesn't need all the Santa Claus pantomime, and they simply exchange gifts before lunch. Susan gives him an envelope with some money, to buy himself what he wants, while Max takes a crumpled packet from her school bag. Once Billy tears the paper he finds himself staring at the new AC/DC album.

"Thought you might like it. But if not I can change it."

Billy grunts, getting threateningly close to Max who instinctively steps back, but is not quick enough. Billy grabs her and hugs her tight, hiding his face in her red hair, "Thank you shitbird. I'll drive you to that stupid skateboard shop in Indy, ok?"

"Yeah. I'd like that," she replies, hugging him back.

They have a nice lunch, nothing too crazy because it's just the three of them, and in the afternoon Steve, Dustin, and Lucas come to take Max to the Wheelers.

"There's a place for one more if you want," Steve says, giving him a knowing look.

Steve and Billy have been hanging out since the night Max got lost in the woods after being hunted down by a stray dog and their friendship slowly became something more… personal.

"Give me a sec," Billy replies, going to his room to wear the red sweater under his jacket and grab the bag with the green one.

After a little fight with Dustin, who proudly declares he has shotgun privileges for life, Steve manages to convince him to sit in the back with Max and Lucas and drives them to the Wheeler house.

"Dustin's mom will come to get you, ok?" Steve says once they get there.

"Ok. Now go! We want to have fun!" Max answers, pushing the boys out of the car.

"My place?" Steve asks Billy with a wink, and Billy nods, staring out of the window. 

"Someone snitched, huh?" Steve sighs his eyes on the road.

"Max gave me a long lecture if that's what you mean," Billy replies, drawing a little heart on the fogged glass.

"I want you to know something before we get inside," Steve says, parking the car in the garage, and Billy slowly turns toward him.

"What?" 

Billy braces himself, ready to be rejected, holding the passenger seat so hard that his knuckles whiten.

"I bought a Christmas tree. A big one. Dustin insisted and the boy helped me decorate it so… I have a Christmas Tree."

"Ok."

"And... well you'll see it. Are you ok with the Christmas Tree? It's not… well his huge. And it clashes terribly with the furniture but… I like it." Steve admits, scratching the back of his neck.

"I'm out of shape but I'm pretty sure I can still beat a Christmas Tree if it tries to attack us."

"God, Max was right. You are a huge grumpy cat." Steve chuckles, getting out of the car and stepping toward the door that connects the garage with the inside of the house.

"Am I what? I'm not! I'm fucking not! Ok? Harrington! Harrington!" Billy yells, and when he gets into the living room Steve is kneeling at the base of a huge Christmas Tree, plugging it in.

A series of shining lights projects colorful shadows on the walls.

"It's beautiful." 

"You're beautiful," Steve replies, yanking some hair behind Billy's ear. "Take off your jacket. It's too hot inside."

Billy stalls for a moment, but then he opens his jacket and Steve starts to guffaw.

"Oh my god! Where did you find it?" He asks.

"No questions, ok? I have one for you too."

"Like yours?"

"No. I was worried it was too much for a present."

"Yeah, fucking reindeer… literally fucking reindeer!" Steve keeps laughing, holding his stomach with one hand, while he wipes away the tears with the other.

He keeps laughing even while he puts on the green sweater that surprisingly fits him very nicely.

"Ok. Ok." Steve says when he can breathe again, “I have something for you too.” He tells Billy, grabbing a little packet with a red bow that’s bigger than the package itself.

“Are you proposing, Harrington?” Billy mocks him, grabbing the package. He tears the cheerful paper, Robin wrapped it, Steve explains, and when he finally opens the package Billy’s speechless. 

Inside the little box, there’s a key. A house key. Steve’s home key.

“There’s also an empty drawer for you in my room, but Rob said that the key was enough.” Steve shrugs.

Billy grabs Steve by his arm, yanking him toward himself, but Steve stops him before their lips collide.

“What? You offer me your house's key only to deny me a kiss?” Billy whines.

“Wait! Something is missing!” Steve says, moving back toward the Christmas Tree, grabbing a Santa Claus hat and something green that looks like, “Mistletoe?” 

“Yeah. Mistletoe." Steve replies, holding it with his hand, "Now… kiss?”

It would make a nice picture, the two of them with their Christmas sweater kissing under the mistletoe. Maybe next year they won’t be alone. Maybe they’ll celebrate with the kids, and Robin, maybe even Susan, but tonight it’s just the two of them and it’s more than enough.

Permanent taglist: @katyawriteswhump

[sweetbunpura]

Kalim Al Asim

We know Kalim ain't book smart and maybe not street smart, but I feel like Kalim's smarts lie in emotional. He's emotionally intelligent, able to pick up on people's emotions way better and easier even before they're aware of it.

"But why didn't he pick up on Jamil's hatred of him?"

Because Kalim's had to live his whole life in fear and he didn't want to accept or acknowledge that his "best friend" hated him for the fear of losing him. Kalim likes to see the good in people as a safety precaution to his own feelings, because the moment he lets that barrier down, he'll be over run by his own fears and the true nature of people. Everyday in Scalding Sands was a day where Kalim might not be alive. Either from his father's many wives trying to kill him for a chance of their child being the next head of the household or from the idea that his own siblings might cause his death.

Kalim can casually talk about the: poisoning attempts, the kidnapping attempts, or the murder attempts. Of course he laughs it off, making it seems like he's gotten so used to it that it no longer bothers him. But it greatly bothers him, to the point where his least favorite food is curry, the same meal that caused Jamil's poisoning.

Sorry, wait, back to his emotionally intelligence. Kalim being the leader of Scarabia makes sense, even if his father bribed Crowley into being the next dorm leader. "Scarabia is a home to many thoughtful and intellectual students." Intelligence doesn't strictly mean book smarts, Kalim is the dorm leader whose in touch with his feelings them most. Others have either suppressed them, refused to acknowledge them, or unaware of them. Sure, Kalim has no doubt suppressed his own emotions in favor of helping others out with theirs.

Which is why his dorm members think so highly of him, cause they can come to Kalim for their emotional problems. His good nature make others want to smile, even if for a little while, they can forget what problem they were having when talking to him.

I know people paint Kalim as not very smart, which the boy does have some attention problems (probably has some advanced form of ADHD), but he is, just not in the book realm.

It's nice to have a least a beacon of light in a world that's been dark, but that light needs to be taken care of as well.

[ladyrashelougai]

Can you please write a scenario where we are mermaids...?

“Shelly Girl”

-y/n was a curious mermaid who finally got stuck one day because of her excessive curiosity about the surface of the earth....

🍵Fukuzawa Yukichi:

° He was just a tourist and had come to the beach for a trip, he had heard that there are special shells there; And of course, he knew that people bring their dogs and cats there for a walk, and well! He also keeps many cats.... .

° His goal was to enjoy a little walk around the beach and the relaxing environment by the sea, until he saw you and everything changed! ; The way you were sitting on a relatively large boulder in the middle of the waves,... the way you gently waved your pink scaly tail and cute fins on the edge of the stone bed to feel the flow and humidity of the water,... even the way you Seeing that he had noticed your presence, you were surprised and scared and dived into the water again... All this seemed very cute, sweet and shocking at the same time for him!

° After the day he saw you for the first time, there wasn't a day when he didn't walk around with a small can of tuna and wait to see you again and feed you... and maybe even talk to you, if Let me! (Oh, poor Yukichi...he only specializes in cat food, mermaids, fish?! I don't know.)

🥞Osamu Dazai:

° Oh, isn't it clear?! As usual, he had come out due to excessive unemployment and of course having fun, after he had managed to get out from under the huge amount of work of the agency in Barra to spend some time... and that's where he saw you!

° You were sitting on the soft and wet sand of the beach near the water until the waves that came towards the beach slowly hit your tail and narrow waist... You guessed that maybe because of the excessive humidity of the air and the possibility of rain that day, the beach Be very, very quiet, but your prediction turned out to be wrong! Congratulations, anyway, Osamu was there and noticed you too!!!

° He was standing behind you at a relatively large distance and didn't make any noise, he didn't want you to notice his presence... until he decided to take slow and measured steps towards you, when a thin wooden splinter broke under his feet and he called out. Turning your head quickly, you noticed a person standing behind you! Osamu was looking at you and now seeing your sweet face, even a smile appeared on his face!

🐯 Nakajima Atsushi:

° After he had completed his mission, he had come to the beach for a short rest; He likes the semi-humid air and the view of the sunset there, what is better than enjoying the beauty of nature to calm the tired mind?!

° His thoughts wandered between the details of his next mission and the beauty of the rays of sunlight, until he noticed a beautiful creature whose delicate torso was visible between the green-blue waves of the sea, and as it happened, he was also staring at the sunset and humming a song. He was doing... Atsushi had seen you! Maybe for the first few seconds, it was shocking for him to see something that can be called a "mermaid", but after he remembered that he is a tiger, he just smiled a little and looked at the sight of you among the waves and under the rays...You are singing in the beautiful sunlight in the sunset, he was dazzled....

° You had reached a part of the music that was his favorite and he had memorized it well, you heard his voice speaking in a soft tone: "I know the rest... You call th shouts baby, I just wanna be yours...." It was strange that you didn't feel insecure even though he was around, you finally tilted your head back a little to see him, and without taking a step closer to each other or making any additional movement, just under your lips...You hummed the continuation of the music while enjoying the view of the sunset..!

��Kenji Myiazawa:

° He had come to collect some oysters for the children of the agency and maybe even make necklaces with oysters for some of them! He was walking in the closest part of the beach to the sea... his eyes wandered between the shells buried in the sand particles and he collected them one by one until his eyes fell on a large, colorful and shiny blue shell, he wanted it too. A delicate hand quickly pulled that oyster out of the sand and took it away from him!

° The only mistake you made was that you surfaced at the worst possible time to find your shell necklace, but you still didn't know how to let someone else take your necklace, especially since it was a human! When you were about to pull your hand back and go back into the water after grabbing the necklace, Kenji quickly grabbed your wrist and stared at you with a surprised and confused look and said, "Hey! What are you doing?! I chose that for Yusano-chan!"

° When you are shocked and pause for a few seconds and then whisper in a very low and careful voice: "This necklace is mine...", he pauses for a few moments and then gently releases your wrist, some of the shells He puts the ones he collected on the sand in front of you and says in a friendly and energetic tone:"Then you can take these for your friends too!"

🪻 Fyodor Dostoevsky:

° As usual, he had preferred a quiet place to rest and clear his mind for a few moments... especially since it was night and the beach was quieter and darker than any other time! He had arranged a chess board in a corner on the stone board and was playing with himself.

° Even the darkness of the night and the chess board and the pieces will not make you notice the light and beautiful sparkle of your tail under the moonlight! Finally, he took his gaze from the chessboard and for a few moments stared at the shine of your body and white skin under the moonlight, and then fixed his piercing purple eyes on you completely and whispered: "Beautiful..."

° he don't hurt you, in fact, you enjoyed talking with such a mysterious person who was considered a representative of all the people on this planet! And it was precisely for this reason that Fyodor came to the beach every night after the first night of your meeting, with a chess board in his hand....

💊Mori Ougai:

° The doctor of the underground world with all kinds of medical information, and the one who is secretly the head of Yokohama's biggest criminal gang, Port Mafia! Did he come there for nothing? Just to walk?NO!! He was even aware of the existence of creatures like you in that part of the beach!! Finally, he goes there to research some plant and animal samples....

° He knew from the beginning that your species go to the surface of the water at night due to excessive curiosity about the world outside the water... just as he knew that his species go into the water due to excessive curiosity about the underwater world! So he set a trap for you by picking foods near the water that he knew you like their scent!....When the smell of chocolate hits you, you can't hide yourself under the water more than that, and with curiosity and desire you stick your head out of the waves and stare at the shore, you swim a little closer to the shore until you hear he's piercing and playful sound...You hear him say in a scary tone:"I Catch you, little doll...!~".And yes..., your tail will get stuck in the net that was spread in the water!

° Manipulation, testing, abuse... it doesn't matter to him, he does it! The only thing you can do is to answer his questions more carefully and behave more obediently, so that you might suffer less and even get a reward from him... but be careful what information you give him, it might end up being expensive for you....very expensive!!!

“Haha! My hand hurt!!”

[oh-surprise-its-me]

Jake knows he feels too much, he’s felt too much for years.

Hangman.

Christ. If only they knew he had lists in his notes app for allergies, likes and dislikes, favorite foods and birthdays.

Hangman.

Yeah. It’d be more fitting if he had been the one to leave the other behind. But no, he was flying with Snakebite and the asshole left Jake behind but hadn’t done the move right. So Jake pulled forward and ahead and Snake had to abort.

Hangman.

He wishes he could take the persona off, but it settles on his shoulders like a jacket. He finds some comfort in it. Jake knows that Javy can see through it, why Jake always sticks close to Javy and doesn’t ask too many questions. Has the confidence in himself when he really hasn’t had any since his father kicked him out at 15.

Hangman.

He sits outside the hard deck in the sand, he hears someone come up behind him. It’s probably Javy. The only person whose ever come to check on him in 20 years.

“You good Jake?”

Oh. Oh. That’s not Javy. That’s Bradley.

He sniffs, “yeah what’s it to you Roo.”

Bradley lands on the sand next to Jake, he sits close enough their shoulders touch. “Saw you leave. But I also saw you start crying. Figured I’d check up on you.”

Jake let’s put a wet laugh, he scrubs at his eyes. Jake, such the fucking cry baby look at you now.

“Jake come on what’s up, are you okay? Are you hurt? Should I get Javy?” Jake shakes his head, “no let him have his night. It’s stupid anyways. I’m just a bit drunk.”

Hangman.

“Can’t be that stupid if it made you cry.”

Jake falls back into the sand, it’s easier this way, he can just stare at the stars instead of looking away from Bradley.

“Nat almost drank coconut rum.”

Bradley lays back in the sand next to Jake. “Not sure I follow. But keep talking.” Jake shakes his head. “She’s allergic. No one saw but me so I reminded her. She told me to fuck off, and that if she wanted a lecture from her mom she’d call her.”

Bradley let’s out a puff of air. “Shit. I didn’t know she was allergic.”

Jake laughs again. God this day can’t end fast enough. “Not dead allergic just enough it bothers her. She mentioned once a few years ago.”

Bradley nods, “you notice things about people. You care.”

Now it’s Jakes turn to nod, “reason I came out here was I figured no one would notice I was gone. Got too loud in there.”

“I notice.”

Now Jake turns to look at Bradley, he’s not sure what he’s expecting to see but the look of, caring? God Jake might even dare to say love? In Bradley’s eyes are a startling image.

“You always let Payback have shotgun because rarely gets car sick, you let Javy have all your pickles because he loves them. You remembered Nat is allergic to coconut even though I’ve known her for years and she mentioned it to you once.”

Bradley takes a breath sitting back up. “God Jake I think I notice everything about you.”

Jake is shocked that Bradley has been apparently watching him for years. Shit maybe his crush isn’t just one sided. He sits up, twisting to face Bradley head on.

“You care?”

Bradley smiles, “please god punch me if I got this wrong Jake but I more then care.”

And then he kisses Jake.

Bradley Bradshaw is kissing Jake Seresin.

Merry fucking Christmas in July to Jake.

Jake pulls away. “I’m a lot Bradley. I feel too much. I cry when dogs die in movies. I get angry around father related holidays. I have a weirdly dependent relationship with my best friend. I get it if you want to run away.”

Bradley takes Jake’s hand, he brings it up to his mouth kissing it and then using it to drag Jake into a hug. “I like a lot Jake. I’m grabby in the mornings. I take 30 minute showers. I cook but maybe not to the best level. I go full out at any holiday but I’m insufferably overkill around Valentine’s Day. I’m not running if you aren’t.”

Jake presses a kiss into Bradley’s neck. He feels tears in his eyes but for different reasons now. “Well I guess there’s only one way for me to know about the grabby morning part huh?”

Bradley laughs, he stands in one motion, and sticks a hand out for Jake to grab. “Wanna find out?”

Jake smiles up and grabs Bradley’s hand.

He’s not letting go. And he’s going to remember every damn moment of tonight.

[but-make-it-sapphic]

Back at it again with a tough lesbian fanfic. I have a type, I suppose. 👀 They gotta look like they could hurt me. 😅 Anyways, here’s:

Chaem from Coral Island | Cooking Up Romance

“Hey!”

A gentle nudge startled me awake. I blinked and stared down at the culprit. One bare foot—tanned and wide from years of walking around without shoes—was poised in the air, ready to strike again if necessary. I traced it upward, my gaze trailing along its owner’s muscular calf, their thighs each thicker than my head, their perfectly sun-kissed abs and biceps that looked like they could crush me in a bear hug if they wanted to.

But there was nothing playful in the way their owner gazed down at me. Their expression was set, almost stern. “You’re in my way.”

“Oh? Uh…sorry.” I quickly climbed to my feet and bent to retrieve my towel. “Are these spots assigned or something?”

“What?” Their face scrunched up in confusion. “No. This is just where I stand. I’m the lifeguard here.”

I glanced to my left down the beach, seeing only the woman in the chair. To the right, I found no one. “Uh huh. And…exactly whose life are you guarding?”

They crossed their arms over their chest, and my attention was immediately diverted to their chiseled shoulders. Muscles like that had always been my weakness.

“School is about to let out. And this beach is the place to be when you live on such a small island.”

I forced my gaze upward to meet their eye again. “Uh, Sure. Yeah, that makes sense. Well…happy guarding.”

After taking a few awkward steps away, something pulled me back: a gut feeling I couldn’t ignore. I needed to at least get their name.

“So…is there really nowhere else one could go to… I dunno, hang out?”

They cast me a sideward glance, seemingly surprised that I was still standing there. “Do you mean for the kids, or…?”

I felt my cheeks grow hot. “Oh! No, I mean for me.”

“Well, there’s always Fishensips for food and karaoke.”

“Oh, perfect! I love food!”

The slightest smile twitched at the corner of their full lips. “I recommend Frank’s pesto pasta. It’s the best around. There’s also Raj’s Coffee Corner right out front where most islanders go in the mornings. Their coffee is really good, or so I hear.”

So, they don’t drink coffee…

“And what’s your favorite place on the island?” I asked.

They turn toward me, their expression softening just a bit. “The hot springs, without a doubt. Nothing beats a hot soak after a hard workout.”

I swallowed hard, determined to not allow myself to imagine it. “That sounds amazing. I’ve been working so hard all morning trying to clear all these stupid rocks out of the garden and…” I trailed off, worried I might begin to ramble.

“Right. You’re the new farmer.”

“I’m Riley,” I said with a smile.

“Riley,” they repeated. Their voice was deep and a little gruff. I loved the sound of my name in their mouth. “I’m Chaem.”

But they didn’t move to shake my hand or anything. They still stood there, cross-armed, as their gaze flitted between me and the ocean.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you Chaem. Could I…ask your pronouns?”

“She/her is fine,” she said. Then she chuckled. “Thanks for asking. Most people just assume. I guess the tourists aren’t used to seeing strong women.”

I hugged my towel to my chest with a chuckle. “Oh, trust me. I get it. Long hair and a little mascara and most people assume I’m a woman. Not all nonbinary people are androgynous.”

“Exactly! Do you use they/them?”

“I do,” I said with a nod. “But I wouldn’t punch someone for throwing a she in there now and again.”

Chaem nodded, amused. I dug my toes into the sand and wracked my brain for something to ask just to keep her talking. But she spoke up before I could think of anything.

“Well…I’d better get to work. It only takes a split second for somebody to get into trouble in the water. But I bet the Beach Shack has people in it if you want to chat.”

I glanced toward the little hut with a frown. “Oh, that’s all right. I…don’t really know anyone yet. But maybe I’ll see you at the Fishensips sometime?”

“Sure,” she said simply. “See you.”

"Yeah. See you."

I backed away with a wave of my hand and turned on my heel to plod off through the sand. Chaem was...direct. A little gruff. But she'd been friendy, right? I couldn't have imagined it. As I passed by, Yuri lowered the corner of her book just enough to shoot me a playful smirk. She’d heard every word, I was sure of it. Heat flooded my face and I walked faster just to get the heck out of there.

The longer I walked, the more foolish I felt. By the time I reached the cabin, I was certain that I’d been blinded by muscles and that I’d ignored every sign that Chaem had little to no interest in talking to me. I was always doing that!

But after years of all work and very little play, I was starved for attention. I finally had time for socialization. I was ready for friendship. And, if I was lucky, for love. Coming to this island was supposed to be my chance at a better life. And I wasn’t creating it by keeping myself cooped up in that old cabin. I needed to put myself out there!

So, I cleaned myself up and picked out my cutest outfit. And as the sun began to set, I made my way across the bridge and into town for some dinner at Fishensips.

Read more…

[strawberryxfieldz]

yknow, even though I think most of what Matrick Patthew said in his new video is one big steaming pile of doodoo there are a couple things I must give him credit for. (1) he did point out that Frank is often the “odd one out” which I’ve thought about since he’s the only one besides Wally who wasn’t given an origin before moving to Home, he doesn’t follow the pattern of having a name ending in “y” or “ie”, etc.

(2) something I hadn’t thought about. what exactly the upside-down clothespin means. I do think it’s fair to assume they represent the neighbors since there’s 9 of them. MP thought it might be Frank since he’s an outlier even though it doesn’t go with the “buried head in the sand” theory, or Wally. I think the latter is more plausible because, if this is a story about Home seeming like a utopia while something sinister is beneath the surface, then Wally is probably the only one who knows about the neighborhood’s flaws but refuses to acknowledge them. it could be ironic that Wally is the only one aware but also purposefully ignorant. BUT there are 9 clothespins and neighbors, which means Home has to represent one of them and Home is likely just as aware as Wally, if not more so.

I think there is a more likely culprit. MP compared the clothespin to Frank since Frank’s main color seems to be blue—that’s just flat-out wrong. the neighbor’s favorite colors are shown multiple times (the color buttons on the phone, the color of their names) and Frank’s color is yellow. Barnaby’s color is blue.

which got me thinking, even if the color thing is just a coincidence, the clothespin might represent Barnaby. my first reason is flimsy at best since it’s based on non-canon art, but the art that has Wally with a headless Barnaby is an interesting parallel since both Barnaby and the clothespin have no visible head. I think everyone assumes Wally is doing something sinister in this art but that’s not true. Barnaby had a walk-around puppet since he’s so tall so Wally’s just with his puppet before the head’s been put on (albeit looking very creepy haha). Barnaby’s head is discarded somewhere on the floor behind them which is a funny similarity to the clothespin’s head being in the dirt.

my other reasoning is better, and that’s Barnaby being Wally’s best bud. he’s closer to Wally than anyone else in the neighborhood, besides maybe Home. I’ve seen others say this, but since Barnaby is Wally’s best friend he’s probably been witness to a lot of Wally’s strange behavior that points to his sentience. and the last video shows this when Wally spaces out again and Barnaby takes notice while trying to snap him out of it.

I think if there is something sinister going on and it revolves around Wally and Home, Barnaby would be the first to realize it. he could be the clothespin burying his head in the sand to pretend like nothing’s happening, or Barnaby could the first victim of whatever it is. I don’t think that means foul play yet (how would puppets even die, especially when there are multiples of them?) so I’m not sure what “it” is but Barnaby’s fur pattern does match the patch on Wally’s chair, he was the only character whose sticker was clickable pre-July update, and his favorite color matches the color of the clothespin, and I think it could all mean something.

(I also think it’s interesting about the rotting stuff in the garden since I thought food didn’t rot in Home, but that’s another story entirely.)

[forjustice]

Super late to the party on making characters a little bit goofy/silly/uncool but here are some such traits I've been thinking of for my own characters:

Volo. Volo is SUCH a dork in his Pokémon form. He deliberately takes Pokémon form a lot of the time, in fact, particularly so that he can be feral and unhinged and get away with it unlike in human form. And given that when he turns into a Pokémon he actually takes on the mindset of the Pokémon he transforms into, he couldn't hold himself back from this even if he wanted to. As a human he is proud and hates begging; as a Pokémon he is shameless in begging for treats and attention even if you just fed or cuddled him 10 minutes ago. He will eat food he likes as a human knowing it'll make him sick in Pokémon form and changing back to human form won't make the feelings go away but he can't hold his impulses back long enough to change back into human form to eat it. He will get his head stuck in a tube or a cardboard box and then FREAK OUT like he's not a whole ass person who can transform himself back into having hands so he can remove the thing from his head. And if you show him a new toy he really likes he will go apeshit and I mean APESHIT like

Then there's Steven. Bless his heart, though he's such a competent Champion I made him so endearingly dorky in other ways. He's Archchosen of a Pokémon representing the Earth, and yet he has such an opposite of a green thumb that once he accidentally let cacti die. (Really. Really. How the FUCK do you kill a cactus?) He's a fish out of water when it comes to the water and to Water-types to the point that when he first started training them even his first Magikarp--among the most low-maintenance creatures personality-wise--was disappointed in him. And whether in casual or formal settings he will find ways to mention rocks or turn the conversation into one about rocks in every single conversation no matter how unrelated it might seem. Like.

"How was the weather today?"

"Great!"

"Yeah I really liked the hike to my favorite cave today. I got to see some cool stalactites and stalagmites…"

Or like--

"How's your day been?"

"I went to the beach today and had a great time!"

"Oh that's so cool! I love going to the beach. I used to be super afraid of the water, but now I'm not so scared anymore. I love hearing the sound of waves coming in as I dig my toes into the sand. I think my favorite thing about sand is that it forms when rocks break down over millions of years. All of those millions of years of nature's work, turned into a gorgeous and comforting landscape--truly a miracle of the geological cycle! Speaking of geology…"

Or like--

"The economies of capitalist countries aren't doing so well."

"Oh yes. The cost of living has been going up for decades now, and it shows no signs of slowing down. I'm working overtime with the Hoennese Peoples' Collective to help provide foreign aid to impoverished people whose wages have stagnated even as that cost continues to rise. Wealthy people don't seem to be affected at all by it, of course. For example, there are many companies that cater to high-end buyers of rare stones, gems and geodes and their value has--"

I was gonna do more but I ran out of energy but I will do more if I can think of some owo

[randomvarious]

1996 London Playlist

God, you folks really have no idea how much I love making these location-year playlists 🥰. I mean, I love doing the genre-specific ones too, of course, but my name is random fuckin' various, for Christ's sake; I love it when shit's eclectic, which is what these location-year playlists allow me to do!

And no metropolis on this entire planet, as far as I can tell, is more eclectic and vibrant than London. That place seemingly has nearly everything, and when it comes to the very broad and expansive world of electronic music, specifically, I don't think that there's a single place that has more of it than they do.

So here's the start of a super dope look back at London in 1996—all electronic for now. Everything on here involved a Londoner in some way, as either producer or remixer, and as far as the genres go, we've got drill n' bass, deep house/house, breakbeat, trip hop/instrumental hip hop, drum n bass, downtempo, and IDM.

And that IDM track, by the way, I just learned was finally added to Spotify a month ago. If you've never heard of Freeform before, that guy is a *very* underrated IDM artist in my eyes, and while his tune, "Dice," which originally appeared on a comp called Alt. Frequencies, isn't my absolute favorite of his, it's still a total banger. And as of right now, it's sitting at under 1,000 plays, so make Spotify give this man some much deserved money! 🤑

Now, last week, I posted an update to my 1990s breakbeat playlist, and with that update came a song by Ashley Beedle presents The Uschi Classen Band called "Do You Believe in Love?" which, if you're a true-blue hip hop junkie, has a very recognizable sample in it: Smokey Robinson's "Theme From Big Time," which was also used by Company Flow for their underground cult-classic "8 Steps to Perfection." That Beedle/Classen song is on this playlist too, but I've got a couple more for the hip hop heads this week as well: legendary Luke Vibert's "Get Your Head Down," which uses U-God's famous "hip hop will rock and shock the nation" line from Wu-Tang Clan's "Da Mystery of Chessboxin'," and London Funk Allstars' "Junkies Bad Trip," whose lifted funky guitar riff from James Brown's "Blind Man Can See It" was used in Das EFX's huge 1992 hit, "They Want EFX." Surprisingly, "Get Your Head Down" has over 1.1 million plays (!), and "Junkies Bad Trip" has over 250K.

And to open up this whole shebang, we've got some signature madness from the one and only Squarepusher, whose remix of DJ Food's "Scratch Yer Hed" really finds its footing once he finally pairs his stuttering drill n bass concoction with some chilly pads in the second half 😌. Over 144,000 plays.

This playlist is ordered as chronologically as possible:

DJ Food - "Scratch Yer Hed (Squarepusher Mix)" Faze Action - "In the Trees (Original Disco Mix)" Coldcut - "Atomic Moog 2000" Ashley Beedle presents The Uschi Classen Band - "Do You Believe in Love?" Luke Vibert - "Get Your Head Down" London Funk Allstars - "Junkies Bad Trip" Fluid - "Dust Dancing" Fluid - "Spitting Sand" Spacer - "It's a Nano World" Freeform - "Dice" Sir Raymond Mang - "Number One"

Now, everything that's on the Spotify playlist is on the YouTube version of it too, but the YouTube one also has a few extras on it that can't be found on Spotify at all. And speaking of the one who Pushes Squares, I've got another one from him, under his government name, Tom Jenkinson, called "Vogon & I," which is a crazy piece of zappy, head-nod-inducing trip hop-IDM that currently only has a smidge over 860 plays, which is unbelievable considering the fact that it's by fucking SQUAREPUSHER!

And you might be wondering, hey, where the fuck is the techno?! Don't worry! I've got you covered with the terrific Darren Price remix of Underworld's super famous "Born Slippy" and Holy Ghost's highly rhythmic acid-dank basement track, "MK Ultra." The "Born Slippy" remix has almost 353,000 plays across a whole bunch of uploads, but "MK Ultra" only has a little more than 600.

Underworld - "Born Slippy (Darren Price Mix)" Holy Ghost - "MK Ultra" Tom Jenkinson - "Vogon & I"

And this playlist is also on YouTube Music.

So with the maiden voyage for this playlist, we have 11 songs on Spotify that end up totaling 74 minutes, but over on YouTube, we're at 14 songs that total 89 minutes. So if you want an obscure Squarepusher track as well as a couple great bits of techno, go check out the YouTube one!

And I know that I said last week that I'd have another breakbeat playlist for this week, and I didn't, so while you have no reason to ever trust me again, I'm still going to say it anyway: more breakbeat next week! 😎

And here's some more 90s London playlists for you all:

1995 London: YouTube / YouTube Music 1997 London: Spotify / YouTube / YouTube Music 1998 London: YouTube / YouTube Music 1999 London: YouTube / YouTube Music

Enjoy!

More to come, eventually. Stay tuned!

Like what you hear? Follow me on Spotify and YouTube for more cool playlists and uploads!

[mrs-maximoff-kenner]

This is my last minute entry into the June Writing Challenge by @the-slumberparty (because work has been crazy and I finally got the chance to actually sit down and write).

It's a Clint Barton x Reader. I imagine the Reader as Female but I don't think there are actually any indicators of gender. I hope you all enjoy!

Popsicle Pup

You hadn’t been dating Clint for very long, but that didn’t matter. You knew from the very first day you met that you loved him. How could you tell? By the way he treated Lucky of course! You can tell a lot about a person by how they treat animals and though he may seem gruff and put off by the one-eyed canine, Clint SPOILS Lucky like you wouldn’t believe. Always sharing his food, bringing something home for the sweet boy whenever he goes out and, deny it he might, those boys loved to cuddle. So, needless to say, you fell in love with Clint right away. And, by extension, you fell in love with Lucky too. There was hardly ever a date where your new furry best friend didn’t tag along.

So, that’s how you ended up here today. Sitting on a blanket at the beach watching Clint chase Lucky near the edge of the water, a smile painted on your lips. You had been running and playing with them earlier but decided to take a break and sit for a while. Turning your attention back to the boys you let out a laugh as Lucky barrels into Clint, knocking him off his feet. You shake your head as your laughter slowly trails off only to be replaced by a different yet familiar sound. You turned your head and spotted the truck, whose jingle you would know anywhere, pulling up to the edge of the sand. It seemed Clint and Lucky hadn’t heard the music over the sounds of the people and ocean waves around them. So, with a new grin in place, you grabbed your wallet and headed to buy a surprise for your two favorite boys.

Clint and Lucky were back at the blanket by the time you skipped back over to them and plopped down. Their eyes seemed to light up whenever they saw you and this time was no exception. Though you knew the surprise you held behind your back would make those beautiful eyes sparkle even more.

“Whatcha got there babe?”

“Wellll…. I got (Your Favorite Frozen Treat) for me. And maybe I got a Firecracker Popsicle for you… And then I had to get a small dish of Vanilla for the bestest boy there ever was!”

It only took about 2 seconds for you to put down the dish in front of Lucky before he was inhaling it as fast as he could. You smiled and handed Clint his popsicle before beginning to eat your own treat. He opened his popsicle before stopping and just looking at you for a moment, causing you to start to blush.

“What are you looking at? Why are you staring at me?”

“I just love how thoughtful you are. And how much you care about Lucky. How you take care of us. I love you (Y/N).”

You froze. He had never told you that before. You had told him, but he had never actually said it back. You understood, with his past, his fears, trauma. He was afraid. You did understand. But hearing him say it now? A smile started to bloom on your lips… A smile that turned into full blown laughter when Clint’s popsicle was ripped from his hand by a very sneaky one-eyed canine who had to take advantage of the beautiful moment.

“Lucky! That was mine! Plus, we were having a moment dude! No more ice cream for you!”

Lucky just sat looking between the two of you, popsicle already gone with his tail swishing back and forth, he knew he would keep getting ice cream. His Dad was a pushover and his mom never listened to Dad anyway.

“Oh yeah, you really told him, didn’t you?” you managed to get out through giggles before finally calming down enough to see Clint’s pout.

“Aww, I’ll go get you another popsicle honey.”

You leaned in to give him a quick kiss before going to buy another popsicle. And right before your lips touched,

“I love you too Clint.”

[yuurei20]

Cater Info Compilation part 2: Family and Food

In Book 1 Cater says that he doesn’t have any siblings, but this was a translation error: he has two sisters. They are why he asks to go to Trey’s house for winter break instead of his own.

Cater says that “I just know my sisters are both coming home. They don’t care if it’s the holidays—they’ll run me ragged anyway.”

In his second birthday vignette it is specified that they force him to carry their shopping when they go out will take hot baths and make him go out and buy them ice cream and have him do their hair while their nails dry.

According to his culinary crucible card, they ask him to cook for them as well. Cater says they are the reason he does not know what it’s like to feel homesick.

In his first birthday Cater explains that every present he has received from his sisters on his birthday “was 100% THEIR aesthetic. Cute stuff galore, and nothing but!…plushies, dolls, perfume, soap…” He does say, however, that “they meant well. And lately, they’ve even started asking me what I’d like in advance.”

In his second birthday vignette he says, that when he has other plans he will refuse them and when they go out shopping they will let him keep the change from their purchases and buy him food, but it is uncertain if the family dynamic is legitimately improving or if he is just trying to lighten the mood so that his birthday interviewers do not become too concerned for his wellbeing.

During the Firelit Sky event Trey insinuates that Cater has “been driven half neurotic”. Cater replies with “I have no idea what you’re talking about”.

Also during Firelit Sky, Cater says that he “would just about die of embarrassment if my sisters saw me while I was hanging out with friends”, directly after inviting Jamil’s younger sister, Najma, out with their group.

Trey calls this a “savage move”, and it seems Cater’s ulterior motive had been the fact that “it’s not every day we get to see Jamil all flustered”.

Cater’s sisters are also the reason behind his uncomfortable relationship with sweet foods.

He explains that both sisters and his mother went through a “homemade sweets” phase when he was 10, and they would “pile ‘em on my plate”, even after he started having a hard time eating them. When he refused, “they’d give me the biggest puppy-dog eyes. I couldn’t take it.”

Cater “soldiered on and ate all I could, eventually ruining my taste for anything remotely sweet”. This is a problem for current-day Cater, who lives in the Heartslabyul dorm (where sweets are mandatory at unbirthday parties) and whose hobby is going to cafes and ordering photogenic food for Magicam.

His solution in the vignette is to invite the player out so that they can eat the desserts he orders for pictures.

Cater is often having to refuse offers of sweet foods from those around him, including awamat from Kalim and apricot jam from Najma.

We seem him enjoy coconut water and shawarma during Firelit Sky and he says he also likes “grilled lamb chops with diabolo sauce” and spicy ramen: "the hotter the spice, the bigger the hype-factor!"

In voice lines we hear about “a bright red, diamond-shaped quiche with habanero peppers inside” that was “tailored” to his tastes Trey mentions Cater trying to get him to buy spices from the Scalding Sands (“I assume he wants me to make some of his favorite spicy foods when we get back”) and Cater refers to himself as “a total spice fiend”.

(The Heartslabyul student who baked the quiche goes unnamed, but there is a part where Trey offers to bake Cater a quiche and Cater asks him to “make sure it’s as photogenic as the tarts!”, so it may very well have been from Trey).

Cater’s dislike of sweet foods comes up in the main story after Riddle’s overblot when he describes Riddle’s tart—made with oyster sauce—as “not half as bad as you’d think”.

Trey reveals that he had previously deduced Cater’s dislike of sweets, which Cater had been actively trying to keep a secret.

In the original game Cater chastisses Trey for knowing the truth but refusing to do anything about it (a significant factor behind Riddle’s overblot), but in the English-language adaptation of the game this was changed to Cater chastising himself, instead.

(This was possibly pronoun confusion rather than an intentional rewriting: in both the manga and the novel, Cater's line is correctly localized as him chastising Trey.)

[semperintrepida]

A chapter in which a certain famous poet tells Deimos a thing or two about love.

❧

We don't speak of that moment on the balcony. I act as if it never happened. I never took control, never made you so vulnerable—and you act as if that's the truth. But your moods swing like an anchor-stone at the end of a line, from brooding and irritable to relaxed and gentle, and I'm the unfortunate whose felucca has been blown into deep waters, trying to stay afloat.

Weeks pass. I observe you closely and anticipate your wants. Sometimes that means reading you your favorite treatise on naval strategy, sometimes it means making sure the kitchen sends up an extra tray of candied plums at dinner, sometimes it means keeping the conversation light. But always, I remain dutifully yours.

Then, on an otherwise unremarkable evening well into spring, you bring me to a room near the old andron, where we're greeted by steaming platters of food arrayed atop a circular table. You pull me down to sit beside you on a couch upholstered with the skin of some desert creature, its plain of sand-colored fur dappled with small, shadowy spots. "You'll owe me for this," you say, smirking at some private joke. "I've never been one for pretty songs, but for you I'll sit and listen."

[wentzsmatchacup]

omg haii what flavor are the fall out men to you?? :P OH AND what flavor are the different fob albums?? and which one is ur favorite? ^_^

thank you so so much for asking!! :]

The flavors of people change based on who they are n stuff, so like, young Pete and now Pete have different flavors!

Blondie Pete (Pete now) is a citrus seltzer and a warm oatmeal cookie with dark chocolate chunks. Younger Pete is Cola, raspberries, and a hint of something bitter, but like a deep flavor; kind of like a chocolate but saltier; it’s something I can’t quite put my finger on. Patrick is like the Texas Roadhouse bread (shameful yeehaw from a Texas resident. If you’ve never had Texas Roadhouse, the bread is famously delicious and sweet and fluffy) with butter and a lavender tea. Andy is a sherbet with mint in it and a little metallic tang to it. Joe is a smokey steak, cherry juice, and carnival corndogs. Out of the boys, I’m torn between now-Pete and Joe for whose is my favorite. Pete’s reminds me of sunshine and warm spring and happy memories and just overall comfort and stuff, but Joe’s is strangely nostalgic.

As far as albums go, the different songs kinda taste different, but I can give an overall synopsis! :)

Take This to Your Grave tastes kinda like gunpowder, sweat, something lightly fragrant, like rain, bug juice (okay this sounds crazy but it’s this juice in a bottle from gas stations n stuff and it’s great, you should Google it lol), and a snickers bar. Despite those flavors sounding somewhat unpleasant, it’s oddly endearing and I love TTTYG! 6/10 flavor

From Under the Cork Tree tastes like bitter cherries, smarties, perfume, and wood. It’s probably one of the albums I have the least to say about flavor-wise, but it’s SO good and simple. This one has a more cohesive flavor pallet which makes it super pleasant to my senses. 9/10 flavor

Infinity On High tastes like dusty fabric, butter, summer rain, gummy bears, sawdust, and chicken noodle soup. Despite this being one of my favorite albums (behind Folie and SRAR) it has one of my least favorite flavor combinations. I can’t focus too hard on some of the tastes of the songs or it grosses me out, but MAN is it good to my ears. Very salty, very dingy. 4/10 flavor

Folie a Deux tastes like green tea, cleaning spray, cinnamon, honey, whiskey (only ever had it like once lmao), nachos, and dark chocolate. Don’t ask me why cleaning spray, that’s what “What a Catch, Donnie” tastes like to me :,) I LOVE YOU FOLIE!!! 7/10 flavor

Save Rock and Roll tastes like pop rocks, sand, milk, smoke, assorted fruit, wet dirt, something vaguely like nostalgic summers(?) (idk I can’t place it), beef, and sour patch kids. Weird combo, but it somehow works? It’s not quite unpleasant, but it’s not wholly enjoyable if that makes sense? Young volcanoes tastes good lol. 5/10 flavor

American Beauty/ American Psycho is one of my favorite tasting behind FUTCT. It tastes like sour punch straws, whoppers, apple juice, sweet tea, seawater, ballpark hotdogs, barbecue sauce, and blackberries. It tastes like going to a movie theatre and a cookout; it’s freakin delicious. There’s this overhang of hazy, deep flavor, while maintaining a sweet and tangy thing goin on. 9/10 flavor

MANIA tastes like dust, leather, cotton Candy, milkshake, wood, lemon seltzer water, vinegar, pistachios, and fruit snacks. It’s kinda like you dropped your food on the ground and ate it afterwards. I love MANIA, but why does it remind me of kindergarten daycare.. yuck… not a good taste, excluding Stay Frosty, Bishops Kinfe Trick, and Wilson. 2/10 flavor

I May update this post when So Much (for) Stardust is released, but as of right now, it tastes like licorice, pine, gunpowder, sprite, and cantaloupe! 5/10 flavor

I love the way that flavor connects me with things. These flavors also change from time to time, and I can’t ALWAYS taste it, but it’s kind of a neat party trick, eh? Once again, thank you so much for the question! This was really fun, and gave me a new appreciation for their music!! :)

final ranking (based on flavor)

FUTCT

AB/AP

Folie

TTTYG

SM(F)S

SRAR

IOH

MANIA

(this does not at all relate to my opinions on the albums themselves! I Can do a separate ranking for that some other time!)

overall, my favorite song (flavor wise) is probably XO, Young Volcanoes, The Kids Aren’t Alright, and Favorite Record! :)

(Edit: I’m sorry i forgot to include EOWYG and didn’t include any of their EP’s, but I would LOVE to if anyone would like to hear it!)

[caracteresolaires]

49, 57, 42 for My Beloved Dime Novel Protagonists 🥰

hee heeee thank you

49. Does either of them have a hard time being away from the other? Ummm... While things are left unresolved, yes. Very much so. They can both pretend they're fine but they're so super Not Fine!!! Once they're established they want to be together and they enjoy being together but they can handle being apart, just as long as they're still communicating. (And not running headlong into danger to "spare" the other. Nick.) Eventually, he settles down and she's not ready to do so, but he trusts her, and she always comes back. There's no fear of her running away.

57. Whose the serious one when grocery shopping and who likes to toss random things in the cart? Nick will keep Tiffany on the straight-and-narrow in terms of "honey that's not on your list and you don't need it," but they both throw random shit into the grocery cart. He just knows what her financial situation is (not great) and so does try to stem her overspending on fruit and novelty food items. ("Hello Kitty cup noodles, Nick!" "you don't even like that flavor")

42. What's their favorite type of weather to enjoy together? (getting snowed in together, watching thunderstorms, etc.) Being out in the sun!! Following that, watching the rain. They're two summery people who love sunbathing (with sunscreen), enjoying a nice walk in the evening, going to the beach/pool, summer sports, the whole thing. Don't put either of them near the snow, they will get so sad and cold and it's just a bad time for everyone. Gunsmoke weather? They'd prefer not to have any weather, except rain (thank you Darcy), but the geysers are pretty cool. Tiff gets sandsick and so spends sand weather curled up in bed.

[jacks-tracks]

Roca Blanca

30 k north of Puerto is Roca Blanca beach, an empty stretch of sand that runs some 5 k south, past a crocodile lagoon, a few stranded fishboats, 1 zillion coconuts, and not much else. At the beach entrance are maybe 10 palapa restaurants, but on a weekday only Jose and Lulus is open. Friendly family run, jose skin dives and spear fishes for the table, while his wife Lulu cooks with her daughter in the board shack kitchen. Beach front palapa, the usual plastic chairs, full shade from a palm thatch roof, and a 180 degree view of the ocean, beach and Roca Blanca one half K offshore( a rugged 2 hectare rock topped with coarse low growing greenery, and deeply coated with white guano, giving it it's name.) There are numerous reefs just breaking the surface offshore, and the corner of the bay is a picture postcard pocket beach turned from the incoming surf, safe for swimming

Access from Puerto is by one of the many vans that do a set run from Puerto to Pinotepa 50 pesos to Cacalote turnoff, maybe a one half hour ride, depending on which cowboy is driving and how often they pass a tractor/coke truck/ motorcyclist/ or anyone fool enough to dawdle. Even with a safe driver, it's nerve wracking, since the oncoming traffic often contains some yahoo who just has to struggle past a truck on a blind curve. Vans don't carry cargo like in Asia, but this one had a 20 kilo bag of powdered milk on the floor,which was topped by a tippy carton of 1oo's of eggs. Hold on at corners!. These vans are how locals shop, visit, and travel. Surprising how many people fit in a van!

At the turnoff the driver kindly pulled well off the road, so we did not have to jump out into traffic. Paid our 50 pesos each, and happy to arrive safely. No taxis in waiting which is unusual, so we walked in. (AM, still cool in the tree shade) i walked with Leslie from Savary island and we chatted about coastal things and island life. Dirt road after Cacalote's cement, coco palm plantations, cattle pasture, and just plain bush. Gordon and Maru, also from Casa Dan, dawdled behind. Effusively greeted by Lulu, we ensconced in the breezy chairs, and had cold drinks. I lucked out and got a green coconut with sweet milk and spoon meat, one of my favorite foods. Wave watching is mezmerizing, and this time was wildly enlivend by a humpback whale one half k offshore who twice breached three quarter out of the water in a vertical leap,falling back with an almighty splash. Huge!

Getting hotter despite some hazy clouds, so time for a swim. I'd packed the night before, but as 2 of my 3 swimsuits were drying on the line i somehow neglected to pack the third one. Duh! However, since the beach was empty i just walked a half K south and skinny dipped. Given that my ass is so white, from a distance it probably looked like a suit anyway. Small surf, easy entry, saw no rays(Leslie did) and it was fun to frolic in the gentle waves, pretending to body surf.

Back at the palapa, everyone broke out books or chatted Nice to socialize, and leslie was able to speak fluently in Spanish, giving Maru a change from the sea of English, She's from Mexico city, and while her English is improving, I know how frustrating it can be to struggle for the appropriate phrase or difficult word.

By noon it was time for lunch, a menu specializing in seafood. The daily special was a filet of a fish whose name I've never heard, cooked with garlic and a bit of rice. Firm white flesh, mild flavour and very fresh. Jose's catch of the day. At 270pesos($20) it was pricey, but more than even i could eat. I still find it odd that Mexicans want to eat rice rather than fresh corn tortillas. Rice does not grow here on the coast. In reality, most of the food consumed here is imported from the interior or down south in Chiapas. The main agricultural crop is peanuts and papayas with mangoes in season. Oddly too, there are no fresh peanuts in the markets, papayas are expensive, and mangoes imported from the Yucatan. Mangoes are flowering, and will overwhelm the local market in April/may. Papayas are exported. Locals grow corn in home fields, or on stripped off hillsides, but it's easier to but corn flour or tortillas from the many torterias in all markets and most neighbourhoods. The mercadoes are full of fruit, all delivered from other places and consequently expensive. in the 3 months I've been here , prices have risen 10%. Still cheap for chicken ($3 pound), and tortillas fresh from the comal ovens are 5 for 10 pesos. Mexico banned GM corn.

Siestas all round after lunch, in hammocks slung along the palapa poles, then more chats, swimming, beach walking, lo-fing. Some how it got to be 3:30, and we called for our bills. Jose kindly drove us out to the highway in his nice four door truck, saving us a hot walk, and a van zoomed along shortly after that had lots of empty seats. There are at least 3 van company operating this route, drivers giving their counterparts a friendly finger wave. Fewer close calls, back to puerto quick, and a combi truck full. Back home by 5 pm. A very satisfactory day, so much so that I'll do it again next week. Having lounged around puerto for 2 months i am motivated to get out to wild spots. No takers for the hot springs walk.I may go alone on that one. likely back to Agua blanca with Pete, Jill ,and Lorraine next week.